Barnes & Noble
by uniqueinkblots
Summary: Alex in a bookstore? With Justin for company? The two of them working together? It practically defied the very dynamics of their relationship – that's the kind of effect Barnes & Noble had on them. Oneshot based on Episode: Captain Jim Bob Sherwood.


**Disclaimer: **I do not own Barnes & Noble or Wizards of Waverly Place. Pretty obvious. :)

**A/N**: This is my first fanfic so if you choose to review, please go easy on me. Constructive criticism is always valued though. I enjoy writing but I'm not really sure if I have a particular style or not. The format I've used below is one that I've seen a couple times and thought was interesting, so I gave it a shot.

Hope you like it!

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><p><strong>Alex:<strong>

Barnes & Noble was essentially the biggest bookstore chain in the entire nation. Alex estimated that they must sell thousands of books on a daily basis. _Who even reads that much? Why read when you can sit on the couch and spend quality time with your television? People are insane._

If she were to ask Justin, she was more than positive he would happily give her an exact figure on the number of books the store sold from day to day. He would probably even offer to make her graphs of the data and offer to explain the mathematics behind the mystifying figures. _Dork._

Honestly, people were stunned when she so much as picked up a book. Alex was fairly sure that everyone at Tribeca Prep would have heart attacks if they spotted her in a bookstore. The biggest and most popular bookstore at that.

Barnes & Noble.

Justin had insisted that this be the location for working on the Captain Jim Bob Sherwood comics. He ranted on and on about how important the position of artistic team was, and how they needed the quiet and stimulating environment. Alex finally relented when he started gushing about how they would be heroes to children everywhere. _Whatever, dork. You win this round._

She had to admit, the safe haven for bookworms had grown on her. While she did still run the risk of being spotted in a academic setting with her clown of an older brother, she had long since reconciled with his choice of place.

Barnes & Noble had its advantages. First of all, it was _way _trendier than a library. For reasons she could not explain, sitting in a bookstore with a cup of coffee and her sketchbook actually appealed to her. Or maybe it was just the thought of working in a dull drab library that made Barnes & Noble shine in comparison. Regardless, Alex was glad Justin had opted for the bookstore and not the local jail of academia. _Thank god he has some sense. He knows I would never step foot in a library. Psh._

The Starbucks was another major plus point. She was lazy. She always had been. The fact that she could simply bully Justin into getting up from his writing to buy her coffee made her smile. It was better than stealing some of Dad's coffee in the morning before the substation opened and drinking it cold. _Why devise a scheme to take Dad's pitiful brew when I can sit back and draw Captain Jim Dork Whoever while Justin gets me some real caffeine?_

Alex had initially sulked and refused to go beyond her sacred Starbucks area. After a couple days of working though, she had decided to explore a little. She had discovered that the Music & Movies section was pretty good. She had even ventured to the books about art and hesitantly flipped through the pages. They were much thicker than her usual magazines, but they were actually pretty cool.

Her investigating passed mainly without incident. After a mishap of accidently flashing the entire stock of aptitude test prep books to a local dumpster, she had declared the end to her exploring. Or rather, Justin had. _I was only trying to reduce the number of books. Not throw them out. Honest._

He hadn't bought her lie. Since he sometimes did, it had been worth a shot. But in any case, Alex had deemed Barnes & Noble a pretty okay place. She had given it her personal green light. But not because of the Starbucks, or the music and movies. Not even because of the art section, or the now significantly less amount of schoolbooks.

It was the peace that she and Justin achieved there that she liked so much. Sure, Alex liked fighting with him. Loved it even. Hadn't she once said that she was afraid she would have no one to fight with when he left for college? But all the same, Alex didn't mind the occasional bickering break that their trips to Barnes & Noble brought. _I need time to rest so I can think of new insults. I can't be going at him 24/7. That's too much work anyways._

Barnes & Noble was where they created the comics together. It was the one place where all their fighting temporarily dissolved.

Alex treated the place like her personal art studio. She enjoyed the bookstore. She enjoyed the tranquility and comfort it brought. She liked working with Justin. She was impressed at how well they worked together there. She loved their teamwork. _Not that I'm ever telling him that_.

Alex would never admit to Justin how much she liked Barnes & Noble. She didn't have to anyways. She was almost positive he already knew.

But she would admit this much to herself:

The place had become special to her. It was one more place to add to her list of sanctuaries. The couch, the Freedom Tunnel, and Barnes & Noble. Even after Justin was gone, and they stopped producing the comics, she knew she would still come to the bookstore. She had associated it with Justin – and thus, it now meant something to her.

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><p><strong>Justin:<strong>

The substation was not the ideal working environment. Justin had realized that day one of the job. How was he and Alex supposed to produce the greatest comic series ever if Mom and Dad were arguing over paint swatches and continuously ruining their concentration? Nope, home wouldn't do. _Barnes & Noble is perfect though_.

Alex had whined when he had proposed the bookstore as their working space. He had been forced to put on the Captain Jim Bob Sherwood hero worship act full on before she finally agreed. Not that he was really acting or anything. Captain Jim Bob Sherwood was truly his hero. It just would have been nice if Alex had agreed without him having to repeatedly declare his love for the comic book star. _She would have never said yes to working in a library. So this was the second best place._

Barnes & Noble.

Justin had always loved the bookstore. It had all the necessary academic resources. And it even had a fantastic collection for recreational reading. He could practically picture the Charmed and Dangerous series on the shelves in the future. Being the studious guy he was, he had always loved Barnes & Noble. The more time he spent there, the more his appreciation for the place grew.

In Justin's mind, it was exactly like a library. Except maybe even better. Granted, there was a little more noise in Barnes & Noble (that's what made it his second choice), but it had its advantages as well.

Barnes & Noble had as many books as a library, if not more. In addition to that, all the books were in good condition, being mainly untouched. The bookstore reminded him of his carefully preserved Captain Jim Bob Sherwood comics. Though not all the books were new, they were all pretty much perfect and in mint condition. _Just like my comics_.

Speaking of Captain Jim Bob Sherwood, something about working on the comics in Barnes & Noble made him happy. He loved sitting beside Alex and mapping out the various plots.

They of course debated over the content, but it was mainly friendly banter. And ever since the success of clubbing with pretty pirates and bears, and eating tacos, Justin had let his guard down a little. A little too much maybe. _I can't believe poor Jim Bob is going to be swimming with friendly sharks in Hawaii. Sharks aren't friendly at all. And how will Jim Bob swim without ruining his space suit? And they don't even serve spinach and apples at Hawaiian resorts. Whatever, Alex. You win this round._

The Starbucks had turned out to be a blessing too. It was just another great aspect of the store. First of all, it kept Alex quiet. A cranky Alex meant a doomed Justin. An Alex with coffee, meant a Justin with a future. Life was good.

Though he was pretty much against coffee, he still liked the Starbucks. _Coffee means caffeine, and caffeine means too much stimulation. Tea is way healthier, and they sell that too, so that works out._

Justin knew Barnes & Noble inside and out, so he was well aware of where all his favorite sections were. On the other hand, he was really pleased to see Alex taking an interest in the store. _I'm still a little miffed about those prep books though. Alex is so irresponsible. _

But Alex would be Alex. And he had to admit, she was the best part of working there. Justin treated Barnes & Noble like his personal office. Alex was like his partner. Within the store walls, their arguing came to a complete halt. She didn't question him as much. She only provoked him to the point of stirring his creativity in order to take him out of his comfort zone. And he actually liked that she did that for him. _Not that I'll ever tell her that though_.

A world without Alex fighting with him. A world with Alex _helping _him? He loved it. Heaven on earth, pretty much.

Justin would never admit to Alex how much he enjoyed her company or how much he enjoyed having her as an artistic partner. He would never tell her how he loved her helping him to broaden his horizons or how his times at the bookstore were infinitely better because of her presence.

Justin wasn't afraid of his emotions. He would tell her all of this if she didn't know. But of course she already did. He didn't have to say a thing.

Alex liked having him around too, he was sure. Justin knew her pride wouldn't allow her to voice her sentiments, and so he didn't push her. Why bother? He already knew. He didn't need her confirmation.

But he would admit this much to himself:

The place had become special to him. He had always liked the Barnes & Noble, but now he _loved _it. It had always been on his list of favorite places. But now that it was associated with so many precious memories with Alex? It had officially earned the #1 spot.

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><p><strong>AN: **Finished. The working at a bookstore thing was a concept that had been stuck in my mind for a while. I didn't really have a set outline, I just kind of wrote. It ended up kind of long, but I'm fairly satisfied with the direction I took it in and the resulting outcome. Hope you feel the same!

Please review! :)


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